LEARNING DAILY

 

Revelation 13:1, Then I stood on the sand of the sea.  And I saw a beast rising up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and on his horns ten crowns, and on his heads a blasphemous name.

 

Satan imitates everything he sees in God’s kingdom.  We are going to examine in Revelation 13 how he imitates the God, the Father, Jesus the Son and the Holy spirit – the Holy Trinity.  Chapter 13 describes the conflict between the Antichrist and God and His people during the tribulation.  The beast coming out of the sea is history’s final great government; it consists of ten kingdoms under the control of the Antichrist.  The sea represents the general mass of people, specifically the Gentile nations.  It can also symbolize chaos, unrest, and evil.  Notes from the David Jeremiah Study Bible state, “The antichrist has power only because Almighty God allows it.  As bad as the Tribulation is, it is never out of God’s control.”

 

There has been much writing about the ten nations.  These nations or kingdoms surrender their power and authority to the Antichrist and they become his kingdom.  I am speculating – do we see any thing like world regions being formed today?  Perhaps, if we consider various alliances or trade unions, we might see something that looks like the Bible’s ten kingdoms.  Billy Crone had an interesting thought on this subject in His book “the Final Countdown”.  Here are possible regions that he suggests.  Region 1 – North American Union (U.S., Mexico, Canada); Region 2 – Western Europe (the European Union); Region 3 – Japan (might include South Korea); Region 4 – Australia, South Africa (includes New Zealand); Region 5 – Eastern Europe, Russia (consider the influences of Russia in this area today); Region 6 – South America; Region 7 – North Africa and the Middle East; Region 8 - Tropical Africa (the African Union already consists of 54 African states); Region 9 – Southeast Asia (The association of Southeast Asian Nations is already established); Region 10 – China ( the influence of China is well established!).  All I am saying is these ten regions seem to be already established and capable of being the ten kingdoms of the Antichrist that John saw.  If this is right, how near are we to the time of the tribulation?

 

The beast that John saw coming out of the sea is made up of four wild animals.  For you Bible scholars you may remember that these are the same beasts that Daniel saw in his vision.  He saw four beasts that represent four kingdoms (check out Daniel 7).  The beast John saw is cruel and vicious and will gain political and religious control of the world during the tribulation.  “The term “Antichrist” comes from two Greek words that literally mean “against” or “instead of” – thus Antichrist” (David Jeremiah Study Bible).  In 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4 he is called the “man of sin”.  He will make war against God and His people by persecuting those who refuse to agree and do what he wants; they will refuse to worship him as he desires.

 

Satan represents God, the Father in this unholy trinity.  The Antichrist will try to duplicate the power the Lord Jesus Christ displayed while on earth; he represents the Lord Jesus Christ in this unholy trinity.  Tomorrow we will look at the third member of this unholy trinity.

 

Take time to read Revelation 13 to see the full vision of John, the Revelator.